


The Scrolls of Cichol

by KSalamander



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternative Universe - Historians, F/M, Inspired by Indiana Jones, Poor attempts to write political intrigue, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:54:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25390099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KSalamander/pseuds/KSalamander
Summary: Claude and Byleth search for the truth regarding Seiros and Wilhelm’s relationship. Were they lovers or friends or comrades? Claude’s Master’s thesis takes him on an Indiana Jones-esque adventure through Fodlan with his supervising professor, Byleth, the one person completely ignorant of Crests and much of history. Together they will search for the Scrolls of Cichol to untangle the myths of the two ancient lovers.
Relationships: My Unit | Byleth/Claude von Riegan, Wilhelm Paul Hresvelg/Rhea
Comments: 13
Kudos: 31





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Recipe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Recipe/gifts).



> FE referential humor and storyline - they dig up stories/relationships from previous games.
> 
> Garreg Mach will have more modern type instruction, but weaponry will remain the same as in the FE games.

Great Tree Moon,  
Day 20

  
_Seiros was not the mother of Wilhelm’s children: here’s 10 reasons wh_ _y_ read the title of the Master’s proposal of Byleth’s new student. Said student now stood in her office, looking rather pleased with himself. The student was Claude, who was head of the ‘Golden Deer’ she was to supervise. Seteth, the department head (and vice president), approved of her decision to supervise this group of students. She had picked that group over the ‘Black Eagles’ and ‘Blue Lions’ because, like a 2 year old, she chose the last name she heard because it was the only one she remembered when she had been asked which group she’d supervise.

“Claude, you can’t use a meme for a title.” Somehow this was the first time she had even met this new student of hers. She took notice of how well he held himself, and the clean cut of his chinstrap beard. He was the heir to a dukedom after all - if you ignored the wild hair. 

“That’s just conventional thinking. And I am not a conventional thinker.” 

Byleth sighed and rolled her eyes. 

“But what about my theory?”

“I haven’t even read your proposal past the title.”

“That is all that matters.”

“It’s nonsense.”

“Go easy on me! I spent plenty of time reading in the dank library - since they won’t let me borrow the reference books to sit under a nice tree on campus - coming up with this theory. Based mostly on a hunch, truthfully.” Claude defensively crossed his arms. “And, if I’m right, this would be published in the best of Fodlan’s journals, and every history book will need to be rewritten. Pique your interest now?”

Byleth rubbed the bridge of her nose. She didn’t know the first thing about publishing in journals, or why she should even care. “Fine, I want a draft of reason #1 in 2 weeks.”

“You wound me. I’ll have it done in half that time. Though I will need your help in uncovering the evidence for it. There are these scrolls called the ‘Scrolls of Cichol.’ 

“Who?”

“You can’t be serious. Cichol is Saint Cichol, one of the four saints of the Church of Seiros. He also happened to be one of the key figures in the fight against Nemesis.” Byleth didn’t want to let him on that she didn’t know who Nemesis was, and determined to ask Seteth about it later. 

“Anyway the first scroll is in a place called ‘Zanado.’ I’ve got some volunteers to join us. See you in a week, be ready for anything.”

And without waiting for any response - or dismissal - he left the room, leaving Byleth alone in her thoughts. 

She had been emergency hired by the University of Seiros, by the president herself, Rhea, because her father had been  rehired \- she hadn’t even known he had worked there previously - as the head of the university police. Now she found herself trying to learn about Crests and the church - and a lot of the church’s history - in the short span of time before her first class. She had no degree, no knowledge of Crests, no previous interactions with the upper classes, and now she found herself teaching about the history of Crests to said upper echelon of society at the most prestigious university in Fodlan.

She pushed aside her thoughts of Claude to study the textbook she would use for her History 101 class tomorrow. She checked who the TA was for it. Claude. She hoped he’d have an idea on how to lecture, since she never even attended one before. It seems she had some reading to so about these saints and Nemesis.

————————

Byleth arrived at the lecture hall 15 minutes early. She had no idea what was expected. She speaks? For an hour and a half? That seemed an outrageously long time to blather about anything. And couple that with her lack of knowledge she had few ideas how to manage. There was a chalkboard with some chalk and an eraser off to her left, with a podium on her desk. She placed her rather short notes on it. 

She stared impatiently at the door, waiting for her TA to show up  before  other students did so she could get pointers and not seem completely incompetent in front of her students. Claude did stride into the room about 10 minutes before the start of class. 

“So what’s my job? Take attendance? Write on the board as you talk? Dump water on sleepyheads?” He held up a bucket that was presumably full of water.

“Teaching me how to teach.” She decided she’d be upfront about this.

“You’re kidding me, right?” She shook her head. “How did you get this job?” She shrugged, causing Claude to let out a long sigh and pinch the bridge of his nose. “Alright, we’ll get through this... somehow.” He seemed to say that last part to himself, even though she heard it. “First things first. Do you have any plan on which topics you are covering?”

Byleth handed her notes over. Claude looked them over and made a few marks here and there. 

“Ok, so here’s what you should do. Try to tell a story about these topics. Don’t just run off point after point. And I’ll sit off to the side and when I do this,” he leaned back and rested his hands behind his head, “that means you should pause and let me ask the class a question.” 

The first student entered the classroom. Byleth nodded her assent to Claude’s proposal, and then he took a chair off to the side of the front of the classroom, placing him just within eyeshot of her from the chalkboard. Byleth looked over her notes, now with some additions, and wracked her brain trying to come up with a  story. Jeralt wasn’t what you’d call an avid reader or storyteller, nor were any of the other mercenaries. Well, the stories they told were often not for young ears, anyway.

Soon all the students arrived and Byleth steeled herself for the coming torture. The candle burnt down to the 10 am mark, denoting the start of class. 

“Hello class, I am Professor Byleth. I’ll be teaching this course for the year. We’ll start by recapping history from the beginning - when the Goddess walked the land. She lived in Zanado alongside -“

Claude had gotten up out of his seat and moved to the front of the class. He then began to detail the syllabus for the class and now grades would be determined. He looked pointedly at Byleth.  Oh. Byleth then began to state her expectations for student behavior and the department’s absentee policy, among other housekeeping policies. Claude took his seat again, and the class continued. 

~~~~~~~~~~~

When the class finished Claude remained seated, relaxing in the chair with his hands behind his head. Inside, however, was indignation. He had never seen a professor who lacked any knowledge about instruction at all, as if she had never attended school before, which would be insane because she must have attended classes to have gotten credentials to teach. And now he found himself cleaning up her mess. He mustered up a smile and walked up to her.

“That worked itself out.”

“Thank you.” Was all she said and she left the room. 

Claude silently cursed whatever god sent that woman to supervise his class. He would much have preferred Professor Hanneman, but the decision was made without his input.

He made his way to his office to double check the location of the first Scroll of Cichol. His office was one of the less populated spaces as there was ample room for a sofa and chairs set up for tea, a small cooking and storage area, and three rather large desks. The desks belonged to the team leaders: Edelgard of the Black Eagles, Dimitri of the Blue Lions, and Claude of the Golden Deer. 

Each team was typically composed of 8 student historians, learning to face the dangers of archeological digs. And so that meant each were trained in a variety of martial arts to stave off aggressors trying to take historical artifacts for themselves. Claude preferred the bow and it’s ability to keep him safe from a distance while allowing him to survey the area. His team consisted of several odd people: Lorenz, Hilda, Ignatz, Raphael, Lysithea, Marianne, and Leonie. They were an odd bunch and had a particularly terrible time, havingnever retrieved artifacts from previous digs. He realized he should have brought up to Teach - he couldn’t call someone that incompetent “Professor” - that they all needed to work on their combat abilities. 

Claude opened a drawer towards the bottom left of his desk, locked by a key he always kept on his person. Inside was a list of possible locations of the Scrolls of Cichol, worth keeping from everyone else - particularly the Black Eagles and Blue Lions. The first location was named “Zanado,” and was practically right next door to the University’s campus.

Now he’d just have to survive being a TA for a week.


	2. Cichol 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That got most of the table laughing. Claude joined in as well, since the idea was so bizarre, and wrong.
> 
> “Judith isn’t even married,” countered Hilda as she slapped him on the arm.
> 
> “And that is why he needed his legitimacy advocated for.” He turned to face Claude. “You are Judith’s bastard offspring.”

Great Tree Moon

Day 26

“You can’t be serious, Teach!” Claude almost yelled at Byleth. He managed to prevent hitting the decibel level required for that feat, though his anger seeped into his words nonetheless. “Don’t postpone our trip to Zanado to help  Lorenz.”

Byleth continued grading papers almost uninterrupted by Claude’s rather dramatic entrance into her office. “Zanado has little movement of anyone near your purported scroll location. Lorenz’s site is currently threatened by Almyran pirates. If he’s to succeed with his thesis we need to get him the evidence he requires. And that means we need to get there before the pirates.”

Claude closed the door to her office and took a seat in front of her desk. “You do know why he’s dead set on that thesis topic, right?” He did not want to have to spell it out for her, but he had quickly learned she could be quite dense when it came to anything outside of fighting and fishing. To his disappointment, but not surprise, she shook her head. “You do know his question of choice at least?”

“He’s investigating the branch families of House Reigan to learn more about the inheritance of their Crest.”

“Right. Now, are you aware that means he’s investigating me?” 

Byleth paused in her grading and tilted her head and looked at him as if he had grown a second head. “Now you’ve lost me.”

“The current Duke Reigan had only one son, who died in an accident 2 years ago. Normally the noble house would have fallen without any heir, however I was born into one of the branch families of House Reigan. When the heir crisis came about I was found to have the Crest of Reigan and was accepted into the main house as heir.” 

Byleth pulled her hand up to her chin and rested its elbow on her other hand. She said nothing, so Claude continued explaining.

“With Lorenz investigating the emergence of Crests in the branch families of House Reigan he’s effectively trying to discredit me from becoming the leader of the Leicester Alliance.”

“You aren’t from a branch family?”

Careful, Claude, she’s sharper than you first thought. “I am... but my mother prefers to remain anonymous. She never had a debutante.”

“Then there is no harm to Lorenz’s thesis.”

“But-“ Claude rose from the chair.

“That’s my final decision. You are dismissed.” And she went back to grading. 

Claude’s shoulders relaxed and he left her office. He was miffed Teach was being dragged into Leicester politics and going along with it. Moreover Lorenz’s success would be to uncover he was not from any branch family and instead from the main house. And that was something he needed to hide for a good, long time.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Great Tree Moon

Day 31

The Golden Deer had made their way to the outskirts of Reigan territory, just beyond the border of House Daphnel’s. There was a small clearing just beyond the woods that bordered the coastline. Some pirates had landed their skiffs on the coast, and had begun traipsing around the presumed location of Lorenz’s artifact of interest. 

The Golden Deer had readied their weapons. Lorenz and Leonie their lances, Raphael and Hilda their axes, Lysithea and Marianne their magic, and Claude and Ignatz their bows. Byleth stood by with her sword. This time, they wouldn’t lose a battle.

As they drew near the site Byleth quietly reminded everyone to wait to launch the attack at her signal. Her experience with removing outlaws from sites was plentiful from her time working with her father as a mercenary. How different could it be to add on recovery of an item to work she’d done before? Her father apparently had some renown with accidental findings, but never published and merely donated his items to the University when he worked for them previously. 

The pirates set down to eat, and the lookouts retired from their positions. 

Byleth gave the signal.

Raphael, Lorenz, and Leonie began their charge. Byleth followed alongside Hilda, partially because she wanted to keep an eye on them and partially to make sure Hilda actually helped out. Claude, Lysithea, and Ignatz moved to the tree line to get clearer shots of the pirates while having trees to shelter them from any retaliatory arrows.

Raphael’s axe met pirate first, it’s blade tearing into the pirate’s arm. Leonie and Lorenz engaged next. Lorenz taking a slash in his shoulder while giving a stab to the gut. Leonie dodged the pirate’s horizontal slash while knocking the pirate flat by swiping at his legs. After that Byleth could only focus on her students’ relative positions and her own danger.

Her opponent charged at her as she ran at him. Her steel met his wrist. His sword fell from his hands. He turned and ran. She focused on the lack of push from Lorenz’s position. He had two men on him. Hilda had run and cheered from behind Leonie rather than swing her axe at anyone.

Before Byleth could reach the pirate she sensed something. She stopped. An arrow flew between her and the pirate, landing in his chest. He thudded to the ground. She moved on to another target. 

As she struck another pirate on the head she noticed a burly man speaking to Hilda. He lacked a shirt and probably preferred punching to any weapon.  Did Hilda know this pirate?  She pushed it out of her mind and refocused on the battle.

She ordered Raphael and Leonie to the outskirts of the camp, to surround any pirates. Several pirates began to flee, in part because of the loss of life and also from the large swathes of the site being bathed in purple and darkness from Lysithea’s magical attacks. Byleth had never seen such magic before. She called on Lorenz and Hilda to sweep the outer edges of the clearing.

Those pirates that didn’t flee soon fell to the Golden Deer. Lorenz and Hilda seemed exhausted, with Lorenz sporting several gashes on his limbs. His legs appeared to be injured as he now walked with a slight limp. The mages and archers came out from the trees to regroup. Marianne began earnestly healing Lorenz, who seemed to have suffered the most. Lysithea pitched in with more modest healing spells. 

“How is he?”

“Umm...” Marianne couldn’t meet her eyes. A week had passed like this whenever Byleth attempted to speak with her.

“I’ll be right as rain in a moment. And apologies for requiring your aid. It should be the nobles coming to the aid of commoners.” Lorenz looked shamed. “The document I am looking for should be buried in a chest.”

Byleth nodded. She knew how to search an area, above or below ground should not make a difference. She set the perimeter and began to make a grid. The rest of the Deer brought out string and stakes to finalize it. Then all it took was a lot of digging. Once the students set about their task Byleth stood off to the side to supervise. 

“I guess this is what we can expect when battling thieves.” The voice came from just to her side. “And now we’ve had our first successful recovery.” Claude must have managed to sneak up to her, despite her orders to everyone to search.

“Have you been biting off more than you can chew before?”

“More like no one listens to what I have to say about how to organize the battle.” Byleth thought on that, since she hadn’t contributed much. Most of this was devised by Claude. She had just been the one to explain it. Well, she had also led the charge. 

“You should help dig.”

“And help Lorenz find a way to oust me from my title? No can do, Teach.” Claude slumped to the ground and rested against a tree. The time passed in silence.

To Byleth’s surprise the shirtless, punching pirate came back to the clearing, hands held up as a gesture of peace, though Byleth knew he could use them as a weapon at any moment. He walked over to Lorenz and Hilda. Claude, sitting near her, watched as intently as she was. When some laughter erupted from the trio - mostly from Hilda and the pirate, Byleth decided she should see who the man was.

“Sorry ‘bout that. Was a big misunderstanding.” Lorenz shot the pirate a glare, but otherwise said nothing. “The name’s Balthus von Albretch. I was hired to locate something. I didn’t realize I was going to end up fighting the son of my employer.”

She considered the possibility that she had been duped into helping Lorenz first by this stunt. And she grew suspicious at Lorenz’s father hiring pirates. 

“Anyway, I hear you’re with the University of Seiros? Do you know of any job opening? I may not look it, but I graduated from there recently.”

“With a degree in piracy?”

“Hah!” As Balthus laughed he threw his head back.

“Oh don’t worry about Baltie. He can’t keep his money in order and wracked up an insane amount of debt. He is reliable, and he did attend University. I’ll vouch for that.”

“Balthus will help with the rest of the field work and be paid by my father later. Don’t worry about his presence, or about funding him for work today. Now then, I suggest we get back to work. I’d rather not be here until dusk.” And so the work had begun in silence.

It was several hours later when the silence was broken. Ignatz had found the buried chest and called an enthusiastic Lorenz over. Lorenz carefully wrapped it and began to tie it to the supply wagon. And so began the march back to Garreg Mach University.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Harpstring Moon

Day 3

The journey back to campus was uneventful. Lorenz was determined to keep his finding away from Claude. There was a general cheerfulness on the trip, and Claude was not about to let that go to waste. He needed the Golden Deer to get along so they’d work together if he were to get all the pieces he needed for his thesis. And so, he invited all the Deer for fried chicken and beer at a tavern just off campus.

Beers were shared all around and the chicken was brought. Lorenz almost didn’t attend as he thought the bar was not a proper venue for nobility, but joined when Hilda said she’d be going. Marianne actually spoke a few words to Ignatz, and Leonie and Raphael began arm wrestling. Their drunken antics caused more than a little sloshing of beer and fallen chicken pieces. Lysithea was too young to drink alcohol, and contented herself with water and lambasting everyone else. 

“You seem pleased, Teach.” Claude hoped he was right. Byleth always seemed to have the same expression on her face, but he couldn’t imagine that meant she actually felt nothing. Though he couldn’t rule out such a possibility. “Huh? You haven’t even touched your beer.” Claude pushed her mug closer to her.

“Don’t drink.” When Claude didn’t answer Byleth elaborated, “Jeralt has a drinking problem. I choose to not be like him.”

“Sorry, next time I’ll order you some water.” He nudged her in the arm. “And we’ll sit you next to Lysithea in the kiddy section.”

“A certain overgrown child should be there as well.”  So she can be humorous as well. She’s far more interesting than I thought.

“Hey~ who know Teach had a sense of humor under that stoic front.” No reaction. She really was proving to be a tough nut to crack. But he was sure once he found what made her tick he’d be able to coast his way through his education.

“That aside, how well does this new evidence help Lorenz’s thesis?”

“Confidential.”

“Come on, you can tell me. Remember, I  am his thesis, so I would hope you don’t take sides in this power struggle.” 

Byleth munched on some chicken. He hoped whatever she was thinking it was in his favor. A last resort would be open flirting, but that’d be liable to get them both in serious trouble. Though with looks like hers he might have to try just once.

“It was about House Daphnel.”

“I’m happy to hear I wasted my time on a wild goose chase.”

“It was not!” Lorenz must have been listening in, for now he decided to join this conversation. Which meant he might get to hear it straight from the horses mouth. “The letter I uncovered -”

“Ignatz found it,” Leonie interjected.

“The letter Ignatz uncovered detailed a love affair between a woman named Claudia von Reigan and Aulus von Daphnel.”

“You must really be drunk, Lorenz. Claudia is a woman’s name, not mine.”

“Not at all. I posit that you are from House Daphnel, inheriting the Crest of Reigan from Claudia. Therefore Judith is your mother, not some unnamed woman from the Reigan branches.”

That got most of the table laughing. Claude joined in as well, since the idea was so bizarre, and wrong. 

“Judith isn’t even married,” countered Hilda as she slapped him on the arm.

“And that is why he needed his legitimacy advocated for.” He turned to face Claude. “You are Judith’s bastard offspring.”

“With flimsy evidence like that, your thesis is looking like a rejection.” Claude felt a bit safer knowing Lorenz was barking up the wrong tree.

Byleth, still sitting beside him, put her cup of water down and finally spoke up. “We’ll work on refining your theory to something more logical. Next week Monday meet me in my office.”

The merriment continued long after the reveal of Lorenz’s thesis. 

~~~~~~~~~~~

Harpstring Moon

Day 28

At last the team had assembled in Zanado in search of one of Claude’s Scrolls of Chihol.Balthus had shown up as well. He took on an adjunct teaching position, covering classes for Hanneman and Manuela as they had been assigned overloads. He was to act as a sort of aid for Byleth to learn pedagogy, as Balthus had more knowledge than her.

“ _You should be worried about how you will manage your own teaching load._ ”

Byleth looked around, unsure of who’s voice that was or how they seemed to read her thoughts. The voice sounded feminine. 

There was a group of bandits that had taken up residence in Zanado in the past month. Claude was disgruntled his easy search turned out to be yet another fight, which he had not let Byleth forget. Byleth much preferred the fights, and thought maybe she should always schedule field work to coincide with them. 

“ _Sigh.... Don’t go overestimating yourself, or your students._ ”

There was that voice again. It sounded ... familiar? Like the memory of a dream...

“You see? You just had to go and have us fetch Lorenz’s letter - which led to a ridiculous theory I will add - and now we’ve got ourselves a mess here in Zanado,” huffed Claude.

“It’s more interesting this way.”

“If I didn’t know any better I’d say you planned this.” He let out a long sigh. “Let’s get this over with.”

“What was your first reason again?” 

“That Seiros was the daughter of Wilhelm’s teacher.”

“And that proves it isn’t a romance because?” For all Byleth knew it meant the two were close enough for love to develop. Though, she does doubt such a thing could happen with Alois, the former apprentice of Jeralt. Alois has learned security from Jeralt, used his funds from the campus police job to enroll, and eventually became a history professor who specializes in ancient money. But mostly it would never happen because Alois was married and had a daughter.

“There should be rules of propriety against it. Especially with an age gap like that.”

Byleth could only wonder how well that would sound when he gave his defense, but that was a year or two off at this point. She’d work with him on his reasoning skills eventually. Lorenz and Raphael needed help as well, and at least there was some logic to what Claude said.

The bandits had arrayed themselves around the canyon, which appeared to have bridges to the north and west. Byleth grouped the Golden Deer into two to tackle the bridges simultaneously. The group to tackle the west side was Lorenz, Hilda, Ignatz, and Marianne, who would need to tend to Lorenz’s more reckless tendencies. They would be led by Balthus. That left Claude, Lysithea, Leonie, Raphael, and herself to head north.

The groups split and Byleth worried about how the west group would fare without her. It was an idle thought, and one that could distract her. Instead she focused on backing up Leonie and Raphael.

Darkness boiled around her while arrows whizzed by. The sounds of steel meeting steel was interspersed with the cracks of Raphael’s knuckles hitting flesh. Her group neared the northern bridge. 

And she turned to catch a glimpse of the western bridge. Her foot landing where there was not ground. She was in the canyon’s wide gap, beyond being able to get a handhold to pull herself up.

————————

“How could you let yourself be distracted at such a time? You were even aware of the bridge.”

The voice matched the one she had heard earlier. And the place she found herself seemed like it had been pulled from her dreams. She found a green haired, pointy eared, child seated on a throne. Cautious, Byleth approached the girl.

“Whatever will I do...” The girl shifted around and seemed to pout.

“Did you save me?”  
  


“However could I accomplish that? I exist here, and not in your realm. Though I did manage to save you from your fall for a time, by stopping it. When time resumes again you shall continue your plummet to the bottom, leaving nothing more than a mark upon the rocks.”

Byleth felt her eyes widen and her mouth hang open. The feeling of it was bizarre. Moving her facial muscles in such a display of emotion wasn’t something she was used to.

“If only... I know!” At that she abruptly stood up and clapped her hands. “I will turn back time, but only for a few seconds. The students across the way are fine. Don’t let your foot land in the same place twice.”

A magic circle appeared in front of the girl. “You who bear the flames within, seek the sword at Zanado.”

————————

Byleth found herself where she was before she took the next few fateful steps to the edge. Remembering the words of the girl, she kept her eyes straight ahead and crossed the bridge without fail.

Once again her blade met steel and flesh. The blades of her opponents tore into her as well. Though she not only felt the pain as she had before, but now cries of pain escaped her as she felt her face twist into one she’s seen on those she’d hacked at before. It was unfamiliar, and far more distracting than the students she was worried about. 

She paused to get a look at the fight, and felt a hand on her shoulder. It belonged to Claude, and his touch was enough to compose herself. She couldn’t let the students see herself in agony over such trivial wounds. And so she pressed onward, comporting herself as normal. 

The bandit leader called himself Kostas, which Byleth only picked up because he announced it. He yelled about the nobility of some of the students, but Byleth cared little for his excuses. He fell to her blade as much as anyone else trying to take an artifact would have. 

After the bandits were routed the Golden Deer set about scouring the canyon for the scroll. Later that day tents were pitched. The first day’s search had borne no fruit. 

Harpstring Moon

Day 29

Byleth woke to the sound of the girl’s voice, giving her vague directions for which way to head. She left her students behind as there wasn’t much she felt she could contribute in their search. Her wandering had her far from the canyon entrance and far from the camp. She found herself among ruins with architecture not matching any she’d seen in her travels of Fodlan. Some of it seemed like it was made for beings large enough to dwarf humans. At the behest of the voice in her head, Byleth entered one such immense building. 

Inside the door was what seemed to have been a large temple, with a coffin on the top of the dais. 

“How in Fodlan did you even find this place?” Byleth turned to find Claude at the doorway. He entered and hurried over to her, his eyes darting from place to place. “Can that really be?” And off he ran to the dais. Once he reached it he asked Byleth for help opening the coffin. Byleth reluctantly joined him, spurred on by his insistence that the dead won’t mind. The coffin bore the Crest of Flames. At her touch the coffin glowed red, suddenly making Claude’s attempts to open it easier. 

The lid slid off to reveal a sword. 

“That’s the Sword of the Creator,” whispered Claude.

Byleth reached out to touch it. When her hand gripped the hilt the whole of the sword glowed red. Byleth heard Claude inhale sharply.

“That... shouldn’t even be possible...”

Byleth didn’t take her eyes off the sword. “The Sword of the Creator?”

Claude tsked and said, “the ancient sword of the King of Liberation. His bloodline is said to have vanished along with the sword. I knew you had a Crest, but I never expected  that Crest.”

“How did you know I had a Crest?” Byleth shot at Claude. After Hanneman had examined her, Jeralt told her to keep it a secret.

“I can sense these things.” Byleth wasn’t sure she believed him entirely, though it wasn’t completely out of the question. Catherine had almost caught her, but then dismissed her hunch because she couldn’t place which Crest it was.

“So does this change your thesis? It’d be better to write about this discovery than to chase some scrolls.”

Claude remained quiet for a few minutes and meandered around the vast chamber. Byleth took the opportunity to scrutinize the walls. There were pictures that had faded from long centuries of neglect. But from what she saw there seemed to have been a green haired woman and some dragons that were once part of the mural. When he returned to the dais he finally answered the question.

“I don’t want to take away your discovery.” Byleth opened her mouth to speak, but Claude cut her off, “and, if you are honest about letting me take credit, perhaps I can keep it as a plan B.”

“That works.”

“Anyway we should move camp over here. Something tells me I’ll have an easier time finding what I’m looking for here than in the part of the canyon that looks like it was never inhabited.” 

With that Claude left Byleth alone with the voice in her head, who seemed overjoyed and curious about the new blade before falling asleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Claude eventually found what he was after. He had spent most of the day and even late into the night searching the ancient ruins. He slept soundly after finding it, planning on showing Teach the first thing in the morning.

The sun rose over the canyon to paint it with the golden hue of sunrise. Claude took the scroll and wandered over to where Teach was taking her breakfast - some jerky and hardtack as anything fresher had been eaten already. He sat beside her and thrust the scroll at her triumphantly. 

“Here it is, proof that Wilhelm was a student of Seiros’s late father and therefore not her husband.” Claude added a few pats to the scroll for show. 

“Allow me to read it,” she said as she took it and gently unrolled it. Claude stood over her shoulders to read along.

_ Ike approached the sleeping form beside the great Wyvern. Haar asked with his eyes still closed, “You need something from me, fearless leader?” _

_ Ike jumped back a step. “I thought you were asleep.” _

_ Haar, his eyes fully opened now looked at Ike. “Yeah, I was. Until you came within fifty paces of me. Yaaaaaawn…” His yawn matched his wyvern’s great yawn. _

“ _Do you mind fighting alongside us?”_

_ “I like it fine. As long as I can catch some sleep, I don’t care where I am. What can I do for you?” _

_ Ike, never one for tact, bluntly said, “Ever since you joined us, I’ve been meaning to ask you about Jill. The last I’d heard, you were running some kind of delivery service with her. How did you end up passing through Crimea and then coming here?” _

_ “I stopped to chew some fat during a delivery. That’s all.” Haar replied with the same tone one might use for small talk. _

_ Ike wanted to know about Haar and Jill. Jill has joined the army of the enemy, and he needed to be sure there would be no issue with Haar fighting. “How’s Jill these days?” _

_ Haar did not miss the hint. “Last I heard, she got mixed up with the army again, fighting for Daein’s emancipation.” Again, his tone was more in line with small talk. _

_ “I see. Don’t you think you ought to go back to Daein and give her some support?” He really hoped Haar would stay, but he would support him no matter the choice. And, as a mercenary, he had already prepared himself mentally for fighting former allies. _

_ Haar shrugged. “She’s a big girl now. She doesn’t need me always lookin over her shoulder. Jill can do whatever she wants.” _

_ Ike was confused. “I don’t understand. I thought you two were… You know. Living under the same roof and all.” Romance was not a topic Ike knew well, and he’d rather dodge the topic as much as possible. _

_ Haar huffed a small laugh. “She’s the daughter of my dead teacher. Nothing more.“ _

“That’s it, right there.” Claude pointed to the last line that he had read. Victory tasted so sweet. “The two may have lived together, but Haar didn’t feel romantically inclined towards Jill.”

“The names Seiros and Wilhelm are absent. This has nothing to do with them.”

Claude’s victory halted in its tracks. Why did the scroll have different names? His mind went in circles trying, simultaneously, to figure out how he got a scroll of the wrong people and trying to still twist this into a positive for his thesis.

“It’s a code. You can’t go writing romance stories about the premier saint of the Church of Seiros. Any story would be liable to be thrown into some abyss somewhere.” Byleth’s face, while indistinguishable from normal, made him feel like she was internally rolling her eyes and thinking he’s an idiot. Quite uncomfortable. “Anyway I’ll look for more proof that Seiros was the daughter of Wilhelm’s late teacher. But I do have proof that such a relationship is not romantic.” He added a wink and a smile to the last sentence to show a confidence he didn’t quite feel.

————————

Harpstring Moon

Day 30

No sooner had the Golden Deer returned to campus had he been called into Teach’s office. And the words she spoke left him dumbfounded.

“Haar and Jill were married.” 

Those words rattled in his mind as he tried to digest their meeting. How could such a relationship, with such an age gap, become romantic? Shouldn’t there be taboos against that sort of thing? Claude looked at the spot on the scroll where Teach had directed him to read.

_ Queen Micaiah ceded Talrega to Jill. Bearing her father’s ideals, she and her husband, Haar, made the land prosper. _

These were all strange names, so Claude decided this Chihol must have been a prolific writer. 

Finding the correct Scroll of Chihol to prove his thesis was suddenly proving to be much more difficult than he first thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Tellius games are great.


	3. Cichol 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is now Seteth writes Askr’s Lost Lore and Claude keeps finding it.
> 
> Claude calls Byleth “Kyoudai” instead of “My friend” in Japanese.

Garland Moon  
Day 5

Byleth watched as Linhardt left her office. He had asked for a meeting to discuss her Crest and some more academic issues. He formally requested for her to allow herself to be subjected to numerous tests for his research on lost Crests. Previously his focus was on the Crest of Timotheos, but now that a formerly lost Crest turned up in the university in one of the professors was too much of an opportunity to pass up. His research was also interdisciplinary with the psychology department, mainly in deciphering which was important in determining personality: the Crest or how one was raised. Despite the cat being out of the bag, Byleth couldn’t let too much of her past be known. Her father never gave a specific reason for that, but she followed that lead anyway.

The second question was about the potential to transfer classes. Manuela is perhaps not the best Professor for Linhardt. Their interests are not aligned, and he thinks he’d be better suited for Professor Hanneman’s team of Blue Lions. Byleth couldn’t see why she wouldn’t support his move to the different team. He now only needed Professor Manuela’s approval as Professor Hanneman had already given his.

She had a few moments to herself to prepare for her classes that week when Claude and Ignatz walked into her office. Polite greetings were shared before Claude launched into the reason for the visit.

“I’ve a new location to scout later this month, and we’d like to go before,” Claude stressed the word, “any hostile parties arrive.” 

“Where?”

“In Enbarr. Some legends say Saint Cichol lived there for a time. We’ll have to ask permission to scour the church there, including any underground vaults.

Byleth would have to petition both Seteth and President Rhea, which would take a week or two in paperwork and administrative tape. Claude would also have to sign on. She told him to prepare the paperwork and that she’d sign it when he’d finished. He agreed.

“What reason are you chasing this time?”

“Reason number 2: Seiros practically raised Wilhelm and considered him like a sibling.”

“How does that exclude marriage?” Again, it seemed a close relationship only proved it was close enough to bud into romance.

“Come on, Teach. Imagine if I called you “Kyoudai” or something. You wouldn’t marry me after that.”

“Marriage makes two people family, might as well feel that familiar before marrying” Ignatz didn’t say anything, but he did nod along with her. 

“Maybe? But most people wouldn’t find romance in such a relationship after considering someone like a sibling.” Ignatz nodded along with Claude this time, seeming to find both points of view logical. 

Byleth reluctantly gave him a nod. She turned to Ignatz. “And why are you interested in the trip to Enbarr?”

“Well umm... you see I wanted to study the early life of Saint Cethleann since there aren’t many records of her before the War of Heroes. Saint Cichol is her father, so I think she may have lived there as well. I’m not looking for anything too specific, I guess.”

“Ignatz, for the letter of permission to search the churches I’ll need specifics. On the letter I’ll need a list of acceptable artifacts to prove Saint Cethleann lived in Enbarr you would be on the lookout for.”

Ignatz muttered a quick “yes Professor,” and ran off. She tried to go back to preparing for classes, but Claude did not leave.

“So... you have the Crest of Flames.” The news had spread rapidly once her ability to wield the Sword of the Creator got out.

“I am not his descendant.”

“That’s nonsense.” The repeat of words she had said to him stung her a little. How crazy she thought he was with his theory that Wilhelm and Seiros weren’t together, and yet she found herself trying to justify an equivalent situation. She felt her face reveal briefly her shock. “If you can use it too, that can only mean you have that bloodline's Crest.”

“Unless your theory about Seiros not being the mother of Wilhelm’s children holds up.”

“Good to see we are on the same page finally. I take it we’ll be working together on my project from now on.”

It was an appealing partnership to Byleth. The stories of Nemesis were so fantastical Byleth wasn’t sure which expectations of her she feared most - that she was a reincarnation of an ancient hero king, or that she would fall to corruption the way Nemesis did. “Very well.” Claude seemed pleased with the development and left her office.

Unfortunately Byleth could not get a single moment to prepare for classes that day, as Cyril, the intern in the department office, entered her office just as she was able to resettle on her precious work. He was to fetch Byleth to go and see Seteth. Reluctantly, Byleth left her office.

Seteth was the department head. He held himself with poise, which seemed accentuated by his simple outfit, green hair that wrapped his face, and chinstrap beard rather than countering it. 

“Ah, you arrived on time, at least. Take a seat.” Byleth could not figure out why the man spoke so curtly to her. Though she imagined it might have to do with her rather quick and dubious hiring. Could he really be so petty? She sat in the provided chair and he crossed his arms in preparation for his next words. “I saw the report of what Claude uncovered.”

“Is there a problem?”

“Not at all. I request a copy be made and the original presented to me at the earliest convenience.”

“Why? If anything, Claude should be the one to keep the original.”

Seteth began to tap a finger that hovered on his upper arm. Byleth couldn’t tell if it was a tick because he was thinking or if she was upsetting him. 

“It is a personal matter.”

“And this is a student’s thesis. He needs the originals.”

He let out a sigh and brought a hand up to his chin. “I suppose I could wait for his research to be completed for the originals to be brought to me.” Byleth agreed to that. “You are dismissed.”

  
~~~~~~~~~~~

  
Garland Moon  
Day 14

Claude was busy looking over all he could find about Saint Cichol’s life in Enbarr in preparation for the trip to Enbarr. There was scant information scattered among multiple bibliographies and legends. And the library’s organization, or seemingly lack thereof, meant locating information took days. And skimming through large tomes for pertinent information would take weeks. 

It was a welcome break from the monotony when Flayn entered the library and sighed exasperatingly, seeming to share in the dismay.

“As expected, I am not finding anything at all...”

“Flayn? Are you looking for something in particular?” Perhaps finding this for her would prove a quick relief and allow him an opportunity to get some information from her. She did have a rare Crest after all, though not as rare as Teach’s.

“Oh, I was just hoping for general reading that might illustrate the lives of city dwellers.” How dull, and easy to find.

“Right. Well, there should be regional records somewhere around here...” Really, she was a student here, and this was common knowledge.

“I haven't need of official records or anything of the like. Just some light reading on the subject.”

“Light reading? What do you mean by that?” Now this was surprising.

“Oh, you know, books that cover things like what types of activities young people enjoy—how they spend their free time. Popular fashions and trends—things of that sort. And even, perhaps...stories about romance.”

“Ah. I see what you're getting at. Try asking a traveling merchant. I hear they keep stock of, uh, books like that. As for here, I don't think you're going to find much aside from a bunch of stuffy records.” Claude needed stuffy old records more than whimsical romance stories. Romance wouldn’t get him ahead in the world. “We do get new books donated on a fairly regular basis, but then Seteth... Well, you know.” 

“My brother? I am afraid I do not follow.”

“Apparently he directly approves every book before it's allowed to grace these shelves. You know, to make sure nothing "inappropriate" gets through.” Claude couldn’t see the harm in having a fiction section. But what frustrates him more was that there were likely non fiction books he’d love to get his hands on that Seteth probably tossed out.

“I see... I did not realize he had a hand in such things. Well, I suppose it really is no use searching here.”

“Why were you looking for those sorts of books anyway?”

“Well, truth be told, I am not particularly well versed in the ways of ordinary people.” So she was a noble? And perhaps her wanting to learn about commoners was a good thing. “Seteth never taught me of such things, and he strictly forbade me from spending much time out and about on my own.”

“I had a feeling that might be the case. Sounds like Seteth.” Claude threw in a wink. He’d get her to open up about her secrets one day.

“I understand and appreciate that he acted from a place of concern, of course.” Concern for what secret exactly?

“Without a doubt. It's obvious that you're his whole world, for better or worse. By the way, I've been wondering. Are you two from a noble family?”

“Hm?” Was she going to play this as Teach did and pretend to be stupid?

“You've clearly had a rather high-class upbringing, and both of you have Crests. That can only mean you come from a prominent bloodline, right?”

“Of course not! No, no. Y-you are mistaken.”

“So...your refined way of speaking isn't because of your upbringing?”

“I was not aware that my speech differed so greatly from my companions. Do I really sound so... formal to you?” That had to be a really formal way of phrasing that. That she couldn’t notice the difference means she must have been really sheltered. Unless...

“Well... Look, don't worry too much about it. I'm probably just overthinking things. Probably...”

After that she said a nervous goodbye and left the library. He’d find out how her and her brother have different, rare, Crests one day.

  
Garland Moon  
Day 28

  
Permission to scour the churches of Enbarr was granted, and Claude was relieved. Their first visit hadn’t been eventful at all, with the church being exactly what was expected - a church with no secret treasuries. And he had to sit through a service to even ask questions of the priests. He didn’t believe in gods at all, so being forced to sit through service was torture. Teach sat stoically beside him, and didn’t seem to join in. Every now and then she’d stare at some painting or sculpture. Ignatz avidly joined in the service and asked to look at all the paintings and sculptures when service was over. It made the visit far longer than Claude wanted it.

The second church was much the same. Though Claude did get a lead about which district Saint Cichol had lived in. There was a humble church near the canal. Again they sat through service. As the trio made their way around the church, eying art and valuables as they go, Claude noticed an odd section of wall in the sacristy. It appeared to have been a section of wall that was newer than the rest. Claude left Ignatz and Teach to inspect it.

The effected area was just about the size of a door. He got Teach’s attention and she came over. The proposal to take out the section of wall was not greeted with enthusiasm from the priest, but Teach had procured her signed letter from Rhea allowing the intrusion. The priest helped the trio move things out of the way, and they began to pick at the edges of the out of place wall. 

It took a couple of days to finish safely removing the section of wall. There were rusted, deteriorated hinges where a door would have been. Ignatz said the style and deterioration dated the would be door back to the early days of Enbarr. Old enough for Saint Cichol to have been in the church. Beyond the doorway was a stairwell. With trepidation the trio descended the stairs.

It was a good thing Claude was always suspicious. At least he thought so, and particularly in this profession. He used his torch to examine each stone as he followed Teach down the stairwell. He wanted to make sure no traps were activated. One could never be too careful.

But the trap was at the bottom of the stairs. A simple one with a trap wire that loosed a large wooden beam with spikes on it. To make it even more dangerous, the way to safety involves jumping over a hole that was also filled with spikes. Teach calculated how far they had to be to remain safe as the beam fell, then called for Claude to trip the wire. When the beam exhausted its kinetic energy she had them straighten it over the pit. 

They carefully made their way across the wooden beam and surveyed the next area. Teach led the way forward. He and Ignatz followed suit behind her. The path was a maze, twisting here and there and led to some dead ends. 

Eventually they reached a widened area, full of shelves with scrolls and books. Some had become unreadable due to lack of care given to preserve them. Ignatz ran eagerly over and carefully began searching for anything on Saint Cethleann. Claude walked over to do the same for Saint Cichol. He hoped he could finish he search before dinner time, though being so far underground he couldn’t tell what time it is. Teach also helped search.

After uncounted long hours, Teach approached him.

“I think I found it.”

“Really? Let me see!” He took the scroll and began to read. “This is Saint Cichol’s handwriting. You found it.”

Ike watched as Sothe walked off, turned his attention to Micaiah and asked, “how long have you been with him?”

Micaiah sighed, knowing she couldn’t hide her differences from Ike. “…A long time. I met him when I was hiding out in the back alleys of Nevassa, over ten years ago. He was so skinny, but his gaze was so piercing… I wondered how such a young boy could look like that. One day, I noticed he was standing close to me, just watching. He continued like that for a few days. One day, I held out my hand. He was suspicious of me, but came over anyway. He looked like a scared animal. Then his little hand slipped into mine. It was shaking. His fingers were so thin and frail. I couldn’t let go after that. After that, we traveled together all over the continent. No matter where we went, we were always together.

Ike said, “the first time I met him, he’d hidden on a ship we were taking. He mentioned he was looking for someone who was like family to him. It was you he was searching for, wasn’t it?”

Teach brought another scroll over and said she found an instance where Micaiah called Sothe her brother. Again this was no direct correlation between Seiros and Micaiah, but just maybe he’d find something about Seiros saving Wilhelm and raising him and considering him family. In a non marital sense at least. 

What Claude didn’t want to share with Teach was the rest of the scroll, where Micaiah was talking about being of mixed blood. There was hope. This Ike character Saint Chihol wrote about didn’t seem to care about immutable qualities of a person. If the Church of Seiros had saints that thought like that, why has Fodlan been quick to label outsiders as beasts? 

  
~~~~~~~~~~~

  
She read over the section Claude pointed out. He seemed happy with the find, though Byleth once again disliked not reading anything concrete on Seiros and Wilhelm. When she finished the small section she found Ignatz engrossed in a book. She stood nearby until he noticed her presence.

“Oh, Professor, how long have you been standing there?” He said as he turned around.

“Not long.”

“This is a diary by Saint Cichol. He is speaking proudly about the birth of his daughter, Cethleann. She was born here. And this is proof. There’s more here, too, about her early life. Nothing groundbreaking, but it should give me enough to write about for my thesis.” Ignatz looked very pleased with the turn of events.

Byleth smiled. One of her students had success in his expeditions.

She turned to leave Ignatz and help them start walking back through the maze.

“You know, Teach, seeing you smile sure makes me feel better. You look happy for a change.” Byleth didn’t know quite how to respond to that, but she couldn’t stop smiling. “Hm? Do you really not know? Well, truth is, I've never seen you smile before now. At times, it made me wonder whether you were even human. But I suppose that was just my imagination running wild.”

There really was no way to respond to being called “inhuman,” but Byleth was used to casual remarks like that made in her direction. She’d heard plenty from clients and associates before her time as a professor. She knew her non emotive face was highly abnormal and freakish. There was simply nothing she could do about it. 

“We should head back,” was her only reply. Claude and Ignatz gathered what they found, along with a few extras that looked related and left the underground library. 

_“Do not worry too much about it. One day we’ll find out why you were so emotionally repressed,”_ spoke the voice in her head.

“ _And what you are_ ,” Byleth thought back.

  
Blue Sea Moon  
Day 4

Byleth called Claude to her office. She had been reading over a section of one of the extra pilfered scrolls that had Saint Cichol’s handwriting. 

“Let me get this straight, Micaiah married this Sothe?” Shock washed over his face, and he brought a hand to his face. “After raising him and considering him like a brother?”

Byleth nodded.

“Ok I confess I didn’t see something like that coming.” He turned his head to gaze out the window, though it didn’t seem like he was looking at anything in particular. “I’ll get back to you on reason #3 soon.”

Byleth felt a little dismayed at the progress of Claude’s research. Two out of two theories had been busted. And there was no lead on how Crests could be horizontally transferred, if such a thing was even possible. Which left Byleth worried she really was a descendent of Nemesis.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More Balthus in the next chapter.
> 
> I like and miss Guild Wars 2’s jumping puzzles. I’ll have to start including some of them.


	4. Cichol 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “If you look at this diary from Saint Cichol, he details Saint Seiros trying to make a pie for him and the other saints. She needed someone to taste test all her attempts, and Wilhelm was the taste tester.”
> 
> “The diary seems real enough. But what does the Scroll have to do with it?” Byleth was pleased Claude managed to find some record of Seiros to correlate whatever fantasy story she was sure he’d have the Golden Deer dig up later in the month.
> 
> “It’s a fragment of the 13th Scroll of Cichol, detailing the relationship of a young girl making pies and her taste tester. Obviously Saint Cichol was inspired by Saint Seiros doing the same. And if the story lines up, we should see that the two don’t marry over pies.”
> 
> “Isn’t the best way to a man’s heart through his stomach?”

Blue Sea Moon   
Day 6

Byleth saw Claude making his way to the reception hall of Garreg Mach. He turned around and saw her. He started by guessing what she was thinking. She wasn’t used to being studied in such a way. Most people noticed her oddity and looked away, never bothering to speak to her. Perhaps her lack of social interaction hindered her, as she had no response to whatever it was Claude was saying with regards to her inscrutableness.

He had asking about her personal life. His questions were harmless enough. She wasn’t sure what would be considered appropriate personal life sharing in a more professional setting. Though it wasn’t like she had much experience in informal relationships. Still, she felt slightly relieved to not be terribly alone in knowing about her life. And if he felt just as oddly about being at the university as herself, assuming he wasn’t lying, perhaps they could help each other get through the year.

  
~~~~~~~~~~~

  
Claude was on his on his way to TA. He wasn’t pleased with who the new instructor of the course was. Balthus had been hired on as an Adjunct for a month or so now and he took over one of the courses Claude had been TAing for Professor Manuela. And ever since that happened Claude showed up to class just a tad bit late and left as soon as he could. He did not want to spend any time with “Professor” Balthus. Not when he had been hired to dig up his secrets.

Today Professor Balthus had a midterm exam, and Claude couldn’t just scram the moment the bell rang. He helped once over the exams to make sure all was in order. Balthus assigned him to grade the papers. Before Claude could turn and leave Balthus called out to him to stop.

“Hey there, Claude. Where are you headed this month? If you need some extra muscle later this month, count me in.” Claude had seen the way he looked at Teach. No doubt his intentions were more about that than helping him.

“No thanks. Not much need for heightened security at the monastery. Well, most of the time anyway.” Maybe he’d convince him the Deer weren’t going anywhere this month to throw him off track.

“Yeesh, I can take a hint. I was just trying to help you out. The way I see it, can't do better than cozying up to the Claude von Riegan, future leader of the Alliance.”

It wasn’t about Teach? Which means he might not have given up on his previous job.

“You can get as cozy as you like, but I don't think that'll lower the price on your head.”

“Couldn't hurt. People trust you. They trust the folks you run with. I could use a little trust in my life.”

“So you're hoping this newfound trust will trick more people into lending you money. Yeah, count me out. You know fighting debt with debt won't work, right?”

“Eh, just as well. If you mess up leading the Alliance, that plan's a bust anyway. So count me out, pal. By the way, Claude... Are you really the heir of House Riegan?”

“You’re really going to ask that up front?”

“Heck yeah I will!” Balthus threw his fists around for added flair. “Duke Oswald the Old...your father? Tall tale, if you ask me. And if that's not the case, then who exactly did you get your Riegan blood from?”

“Look at you, figuring things out all by yourself. Sorry to say the true story isn't all that interesting. I was born to an offshoot of House Riegen. When my Crest manifested, I was accepted into the ruling bloodline. That's all there is to it.” This was now his rehearsed line, and fell easy from his lips. 

“Nice try, but I'm not buying it. House Riegan produces dukes and leads the whole of the Alliance. Not having an heir is a matter of life and death. Any relative with a Crest would be accepted immediately. But no one even knew you existed until fairly recently. It's fishy, Claude. Remarkably fishy.”

“So Lorenz hired you this time? Or is it still Count Gloucester?”

“Here's what I really can't work out. Duke Oswald's only daughter, Tiana. Whatever happened to her?” Damn, he didn’t take he bait. “I met her a few times when I was a kid. She was a great lady. A real looker too, let me tell ya.”

“I see your mind was just as pure when you were a kid as it is now. How'd you even cross paths with her?”

“As the legitimate heir of a minor noble house, I got a pretty decent glimpse into high society. Lady Tiana was something special. The stuff of dreams, really. And one day, she just vanished. Poof, gone. I'll never forget hearing about it.”

“Wow. So you've had a particular interest in older women since way back when. Sorry, go on.”

“When my old man told me, I cried buckets. Even Holst lost it.”

“Holst? As in Holst the indomitable Alliance general? Huh. I never knew that.”

“Yeah...and after a while, I heard a strange rumor. Some say Lady Tiana left to live in a far-off land. Once I remembered that, the rest fell into place.”

_Fuck_.

“Right. Say, have you considered minding your own business? Isn't that enough of a handful as it is? If you want to have a real discussion sometime, bring me facts. Not a bunch of tired gossip. Deal? Anyway, Teach is waiting for me in her office, so I'd better get going.”

He grabbed the exams and walked, making sure his pace wouldn’t be seen as someone running away.

  
~~~~~~~~~~~

  
Claude entered her office a little bit late, which was unusual for him. She had formally given him a deadline to announce where they were going for the next month’s expedition. 

“Reason #3: Wilhelm’s wife’s name has been lost to history.”

“That’s a given.”

“Exactly! If it were Saint Seiros, however, you’d think it would have been recorded.”

“I’m impressed.”

“Teach, trust me. My mind bowl works well enough that you don’t need to be impressed with something as simple as that.”

She crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair. “Your other theories were less than persuasive.”

“So they got debunked.” He recoiled a bit along with his reply. 

“But how do you prove a negative?”

“That’s been the whole issue! But... I found a lead on a Scroll of Cichol along with direct records of Seiros and Wilhelm during the war.”

“Do go on.”

“If you look at this diary from Saint Cichol, he details Saint Seiros trying to make a pie for him and the other saints. She needed someone to taste test all her attempts, and Wilhelm was the taste tester.”

“The diary seems real enough. But what does the Scroll have to do with it?” Byleth was pleased Claude managed to find some record of Seiros to correlate whatever fantasy story she was sure he’d have the Golden Deer dig up later in the month.

“It’s a fragment of the 13th Scroll of Cichol, detailing the relationship of a young girl making pies and her taste tester. Obviously Saint Cichol was inspired by Saint Seiros doing the same. And if the story lines up, we should see that the two don’t marry over pies.”

“Isn’t the best way to a man’s heart through his stomach?” It was an old saying she’d picked up from some of the women mercenaries.

“Must you foil all my theories? Good, hearty food, maybe. The spicy kind with lots of flavors. A big pile of meat and cheese.” 

Byleth made a mental note in case she ever had to provide food at a meeting for the Golden Deer. She knew Manuela and Hanneman occasionally did. Claude picked up on her silence.

“Oh? You’re not thinking of trying it out with me to prove my theory wrong, are you?” He leaned in and winked in what was a poor attempt at flirting.

“Serve you bland food full of vegetables. Got it.”

Claude laughed. Byleth smiled along with him. It felt good to have someone laugh at her jokes. Mercenary humor was often crass to the point of being rude. Many of her new students did not appreciate her taste in humor. Lorenz had even filed a complaint about it. Professors Hanneman and Manuela had tried to give her tips on the upper societies type of humor to use in the classroom.

Not wanting to let this good humor go to waste she asked to have lunch with him. He accepted and they went off to the dining hall. She enjoyed sharing her lunch with someone instead of eating alone. 

  
~~~~~~~~~~~

  
Blue Sea Moon  
Day 28

  
The Golden Deer had arrived at Magdred. There was an odd fog hovering about the area, but Claude thought it shouldn’t hinder any excavation. All the Deer were asked to come as bandits were frequent in the area. Just because Claude had not heard about activity did not mean bandits couldn’t take the ruin in the meantime. The ruin was along the road. Supposedly it was old enough to date back to the War of Heroes, and Saint Cichol had visited during that time.

The Deer laughed and teased and, occasionally, got into discussions about their theses. Ignatz was well into writing his with his latest finds, and had set a good mood for the others. Professor Balthus had joined as well, his voice booming over the others, and his stance just a bit closer to Teach than he’d ever admit. Claude thought she was probably young for him, but decided Balthus would target any woman, particularly a good looking one.

A black and purple blast of dark magic cut into the group. It struck Ignatz and Marianne rushed over to him. Claude grabbed his bow and readied an arrow. Around him he heard the screech and clink of metal as the others drew their weapons. Teach came up to his side. Together they decided to get everyone into a defensive position, and Teach got the others to listen.

“Before we start heading blindly into a fog full of enemies, I want to make one thing clear. If it comes down to me fleeing and living or possibly dying while making a stand to save other students, I’m running.”

“Claude, that might be the most sincere thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“Heh, there’s hope for you yet.” And Claude left to join the circle the other Golden Deer were making.

The odd mages pressed towards them. Lorenz, Raphael, and Teach rushing out to strike at a mage and then back stepping into the circle. Leonie copies them from the back of her horse. Marianne had to work hard to heal the odd, internal wounds the dark magic left. Some drained Claude to where he felt weak or slow. 

Surrounded as they were Claude could not run as he had told Teach he would. And that was a problem. He always kept extra arrows around just in case, but this didn’t seem like a time where more arrows would be sure to keep him safe. He scanned the area to find some way out of this fight.

He saw one of the strange mages, surrounded by the most dense fog. The fog seemed to be emanating from the mage. He’d have no chance to hit it from his current range, not to mention the mage was hiding among some trees. If he were to reach him he’d need to get there, and fast. He wouldn’t be able to run. Perhaps with a horse?

He’d always played down his horse and wyvern riding abilities. He’d been taught long before, in another land. He was good at it, a natural even. But the riding technique of his homeland was distinct and he feared it could give him away. And so he’d avoided riding since coming to Fodlan.

Claude sidled over to Leonie and asked for her to dismount so he could take the reins. She resisted, but he insisted. Teach looked over his way, no doubt believing he was stealing the horse to run considering what he had told her. She got off. He jumped on, the Fodlan saddle feeling odd beneath him. He charged at the strange mage in the trees. 

“Claude, get back here!” shouted Teach.

Claude ignored her. He fired an arrow at the mage while the horse was in full gallop. The arrow struck the mage, and he crumpled onto the ground. The fog lifted, revealing the scattered mages. Noticing their lack of cover, the mages fled from the road.

The rest of the Golden Deer, along with Balthus, soon joined him where the horse came to a stop. Teach was watching him closely, and her piercing gaze was as inscrutable as ever. Claude shifted his weight, hoping none would have recognized how he rode. He was thankful that they had never met an Almyran outside of Cyril - none even recognized how he drew his bow the first few classes.

“I didn’t know you could ride like that,” spoke Lorenz, breaking the silence.

“Oh I saw a couple of performers ride like that. You never know what you can learn by intently watching the common folk.” Claude made sure to put on as over the top wink and smile as he could. That would rile Lorenz up for sure.

Balthus sniggered and turned away. There was no fooling him, unfortunately.

“You expect us to believe one could learn how to handle a horse and shoot an arrow at a gallop by watching street performers?! Absolutely absurd,” argued Lorenz.

Claude was about to respond when - “That’s enough. The ruin is up ahead,” cut in Teach.

The Golden Deer dropped the subject and began their walk to the ruin. Teach drew up to his side.

“Thanks.” 

“Don’t mention it.”

“You didn’t flee.”

“Not like I’d make it very far in the fog, alone, with all those mages around.” Truth be told he felt like he was shaking internally, both from the visceral threat against his life and the political threat about his heritage. “Who were they anyway?” Byleth shrugged. “At any rate I hope to never see them again. Their magic gave me the heebie jeebies.” 

They fell into more speculative talk about the mages and even began reflecting on the battle as they made their way to the ruin. The ruins themselves were uninteresting at first glance, a pile of rubble here and there with stairs stretching up several stories. Everyone set about searching bookshelves and chests for the lost scroll. With so many people searching, it was quickly found.

Claude saw it on a table by what might have beside a couch near an old war table, almost as if Cichol wrote in his spare time as he aided Seiros with her strategy. 

The Scroll detailed a woman named Lissa making pies for her brother, Chrom. She had them taste tested by a knight, named Kellam, over the course of the war going on in the fictitious world. And just like Cichol wrote about Seiros, Lissa was a bad cook. Although Lissa eventually found a recipe she could follow and made a delicious pie for Kellam. And told him that she only cared about making him food that he liked. And he wanted to eat her food for the rest of his life. And then proposed.

Claude would spend the next several weeks tracking down anything more about Seiros’ pie baking attempts to no avail. He barely bothered to show Teach. She took the scroll and read his report, expecting his assessment that, once again, it seemed more proof in favor of Seiros and Wilhelm being lovers.

If there was any good from the trip, it was the feast after returning to Garreg Mach. Teach had ordered Garreg Mach Meat Pie for everyone. He had plenty opportunities to tease Hilda and Lysithea over their dislike of the cheesy, meaty meal. He tried to avoid Balthus and Lorenz, which was easy as they mostly ate the food. Lorenz ate as delicately as he decided his “position” required it, while Balthus could barely keep food out of his mouth until he was too drunk to be comprehensible. Teach was in a good mood as well, and her smile made him think that maybe it wasn’t a complete loss that his thesis was looking to be completely disproven - not that he’d give up.

As he left for his dorm he wondered how well Teach could cook a meat pie. And if she’d let him sneak a few extra ingredients in there. And if she’d like the additions.


	5. Death Toll

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Interrupting the normally scheduled programming for paralogues.

Verdant Rain Moon  
Day 7

Professor Balthus was in her office. She was not overly fond of his entrance - he didn’t knock- nor did she like being interrupted from grading and prepping for class. He had better make this quick. Claude was due for a meeting soon.

“Hey pal, I’m headin’ down to the training grounds. You should join me. I train shirtless. You’re welcome.” 

“I’m busy.” Was her reply. Though the offer was tempting, his flirtatious overtures were less so. She had felt her brawling ability was in decline. Raphael made a half decent sparring partner, but he had lately picked up axe training.

“Slow down there, you don’t really want to ignore this glorious bod, yeah?” He gestured at his chest and abdominal muscles. “And that Lorenz fellow will be there right now. I’m known to have a loud mouth. I might say something he overhears.”

“Who you associate with is none of my business.”

“Look, you’re new to this high society thing, yeah? Yeah. What I’ve got to say could get one of your star students in some major trouble.” Balthus leaned over the desk and spoke far more softly than he had ever heard him.

“Claude.” She nodded.

“You’re catching my drift now.”

“What do you want in exchange? I’m short on money.” Which was half true. Her paycheck was far more than she was used to as a mercenary, but she was helping Jeralt pay off his numerous bar tabs.

“I’m not only interested in money, though if you want to toss me some gold I’ll happily consider it a sweeter deal. We train and afterward we head off to dinner together. Should be a good time.”

Balthus was the sort of man she thought she’d end up with. He was loud, crass, and always up for a fight or booze, just like the men she’d often worked with before. But Byleth was uncomfortable being blackmailed onto a date, and merely wanted to return to her work.

“I’ll be down there starting at the next class period. Should be soon.” And Balthus finally left her office, leaving Byleth to contemplate on her course of action.

She wanted to help Claude, but he was a young man who could take care of himself. And Lorenz could use any information available to understand the mystery of Claude’s Crest, dubious though his intentions were it was his thesis. She realized now how trapped between two students she’d become.

“Oh no you don’t. I can’t turn back time that far.”

The voice was right, and Byleth would have to live with her fate.

Time ticked by and eventually Claude entered her office, brimming with his fake smile. “You called?”

Byleth put the bow sheath on the desk and pushed it toward him as her answer.

“Thanks a million, Teach. I’ve been looking everywhere for this.” He picked it up and began to inspect it. 

“Did you see the foreign script?” Sothis was awake and wanted to bother her.

“Yes.”

“And with his riding skills earlier that you didn’t recognize he must be a foreigner. The mystery surrounding this man deepens. I wonder how he got his Crest then...”

“It’s high quality and passed down from my parents. I hope you took good care of it and that you can admire such fine craftsmanship.”

“I don’t have much of an eye for archery wares.”

The bell tolled for the end of one class and the start of next. Byleth looked at her student before her. Brilliant and promising. She considered her other student, more petty but also brilliant. And she was torn. Had she been just a mercenary on the battlefield she could calculate her chances and act accordingly. In this there were no numbers to crunch. There was only her gut feeling. She’d have to make a decision not based on numbers, but her heart.

“There is one you feel more at ease with, do you not? Pick the one you get along with more and be done with it.” Was Sothis’ advice.

Byleth stood and began to walk to her door.

“Where are you going? I haven’t had a chance to share my latest location.”

“Training grounds.”

“That’s a bit out of nowhere. You have class this afternoon, right? You shouldn’t head to class after getting all sweaty. Trust me, those nobles do not appreciate that. They want their professors clean and smelling nice. Stay here with me where you can smell nice.”

“I’m meeting Professor Balthus.”

“Professor Balthus? You know he trains shirtless.” He sighed. “Aren’t you a bit young for him?”

Byleth looked quizzically at him.

“He let slip to me that he finds older women attractive. Besides, fists are so inelegant. You should stick with an archer. I can make you quiver.”

Byleth couldn’t help but let her mouth gape open. She, who had mostly been left alone for her while life had been hit on by 2 men in the span of a single morning. 

“Well, now isn't the time to discuss this. You are still my Teach, after all.” He nudged her arm with his elbow in some feigned familiarity. He didn’t bother her as she left for the training grounds.

  
————————

  
Balthus was a particularly good training partner. Lorenz did show up as Balthus had said. Balthus didn’t let anything slip, either to her or Lorenz. After the training session Byleth left for her teaching duties and promised to meet Balthus for dinner. She ended up footing the bill, though he thankfully didn’t pick an upscale place. Instead he took her to a reputable bar, one much like Jeralt frequently visited.

Over dinner Balthus didn’t slip any of what he knew about Claude. She almost wanted to make a deal with him for slivers of information, but she knew that would lead to more dates. And then rumors would come. At the very least she managed to prevent Lorenz from learning whatever it was Balthus knew. Perhaps she could stare him into opening up on the walk back to campus.

“A real knockout, aren't I? Go ahead, look your fill. This is the face that drives the ladies wild, heh."

Well that didn’t work. She’d have to try figuring out whatever Claude was hiding later.

“Good night.”

“What, no goodbye kiss? I can show you a good time, pal.” He moved as close as possible to be not touching, learning over to put his face on par with hers. She didn’t resist when his lips met hers. She had never been kissed before and had no idea what to do, so she kept her lips sealed. After a brief moment Balthus backed off. 

“Yeesh I can take a hint, ya know. Sleep tight, and let’s try doing this again sometime.”

Byleth had heard people talk of sparks flying or excitement and other romantic tellings. She wondered why she felt none of that with Balthus. 

“ _Don’t you humans have a concept of people being made for each other? Perhaps he isn’t for you._ ”

“ _I don’t believe in that._ ”

“ _You are such a bore. Yaaaawn... I’m quite tired. Certainly you are as well? Zzzz_ ”

  
————————

  
Verdant Rain Moon  
Day 8

Raphael met her the next day. There had been reports of more merchants being attacked in Riegan territory. And by monsters. The monsters all seemed to bear some sort of stone, or so Raphael claimed was true of other monster sightings.

This was a perfect opportunity for Raphael to get the research he needed, as he believed the monsters were being made and controlled by these stones. And that certain historical events had been manipulated by whoever was making these monsters. He’d just have to kill a few, and save several lives in the process. Work Byleth was very familiar with.

“Why did you pick this topic?” She could at least learn the motives of her students.

“Monsters frequently attack merchants in the Alliance. That’s how my parents died. Rumors are it’s mostly those who are going from House Gloucester’s territory to the Dukedom of Reigan. If it is true, I wanna know who’s doing it.”

“ _House Gloucester and Duke Reigan again? You certainly walked into quite a mess._ ” Byleth could only agree with the odd voice in her head.

  
————————

  
Verdant Rain Moon  
Day 25

When the Golden Deer arrived at the crossroads there was a fort by a drawbridge. Merchants, and their caravans, were being beset by monsters, some birds and some wolves. 

“Look! The monsters are attacking those merchants again,” called Ignatz.

“Looks like there are some humans mixed in there! Maybe they're controlling the monsters! If they are, do you think we just have to take out the leader?” Raphael said.

“Let's get started, before it's too late!” And with no further words everyone began running to the merchants.

The merchants were stuck at a drawbridge. Alliance soldiers were standing by. Byleth couldn’t fathom why soldiers would leave merchants to die by monsters. Weren’t they paid to protect citizens? And among the monsters and soldiers were strange mages, not unlike the mages that had attacked them last month near the ruins at Madrid.

_“How odd, and yet unsettling these mages are. Do you think Raphael’s idea that there is some hidden group behind Fodlan’s terrible historical moments might be accurate? And once again this is between House Gloucester and House Reigan, Lorenz and Claude. I feel as though we have been dropped inside a mystery.”_

Ignatz and Byleth led a team of Claude, Lorenz, and Marianne to the drawbridge. Raphael, Leonie, Lysithea, and Hilda were on the other side of the fort, attempting to flank the negligent soldiers in the fort. Ignatz reached it, grabbed the key from the guard, and dropped the drawbridge. The merchants hurried across to safety. 

Byleth and the others crossed the bridge to the first of the monsters, a large wolf. She heard Claude gasp as they closed in on the wolf. The wolf was maybe 5 times the size of a horse. It had teeth the size of a sword, and paws bigger than Byleth’s torso. 

She’d seen the likes of them before as a mercenary. No one knew where they came from, but large beasts like this occasionally terrorized villages. And those villages would hire mercenaries to clear them out. It would take her whole team to work together to take the beast down. Surround it, make it bleed, make it weak. Then stab it in the heart once it fell over. She gave those orders, and told them to watch out for the claws. 

Ignatz and Claude avoided most attacks since they had long range. Lorenz took several swipes to the chest and legs. Lorenz’s tendency for danger was why Byleth had Marianne in this group. And watching his recklessness somehow tempered hers. 

Eventually the wolf was peppered with arrows in its flanks and face, and sported deep gashes along its limbs. It staggered. Its attacks were slowing down. It fell onto its side. Byleth and Lorenz leapt at it, plunging their weapons into the chest. The wolf stopped breathing.

And they moved onto the strange mages one the way to the fort. The mages were across yet another drawbridge. Their masks were pointy and black. Their clothes looked strange and occult, with hoods over their heads. Their magic hit Byleth as a scream shouted in her head - though not the one of the odd girl who resides there. The odd sensation of weakness and sloth consumed her again. She pressed on. Her sword found flesh. The flesh relented as the owner screamed. The first mage dropped. 

Ignatz, Claude, and Lorenz killed the remaining mages. They regrouped with the flanking group led by Raphael and pushed to the fort. They too were covered in wounds left by a large wolf. 

When confronted, the soldiers pled for their lives. Lorenz docked their salaries, claiming it was the duty of every noble to hire competent soldiers to defend the common folk. She left the soldiers to Lorenz and walked outside. There she found Ignatz and Raphael talking to one of the merchants.

“You there! Did you just fight off those monsters?”

“We did. You're one of the merchants, right?” Ignatz answered. “If you don't mind me asking...were you headed to the Riegan Dukedom?”

“We were. We traveled around the Alliance selling our wares. I heard this route was dangerous, but...”

“‘Dangerous,’ you say. Are you referring to the recent cases of merchants being attacked on that route?”

“That's right. We can't turn a profit without going to Derdriu. I don't know what Count Gloucester is thinking.”

“This is the count’s doing?” She was indignant that someone would target their own citizens in whatever power struggle was going on in the Alliance.

“Looks that way. I think he's unhappy with merchants contributing to House Riegan's wealth. It seems like he's been at odds with them forever. They say even the previous Duke Riegan's death...” 

“Was that the count's fault too?” Raphael finally spoke up. The merchant recounted that Count Gloucester had asked the former Duke Reigan to trade art, and had asked some merchants to go with him to appraise the prices. Byleth had to remind Raphael to get out a notebook and paper. This was exactly why they were here. 

Though she felt a tad bit bad knowing that Lorenz’s father was a conspirator to Raphael’s parents’ deaths.

“Don’t worry about it, Professor.” Raphael assured her. “It’s only a rumor, and if it’s true, it’s got nothing to do with us. And I bet Lorenz doesn't know either! The way I see it, it was monsters that killed my parents. They died in an accident. I got no reason to hate anyone or blame somebody else for their deaths. I don't have time for that. I got my little sis to worry about instead.”

“So that’s why you came to get your degree...”

“Yup. I need to graduate, get my degree, then I can get a job that can support my gramps and little sis.”

Byleth was proud of how Raphael was taking these revelations. He had a good, caring heart. She felt she needed to do her best to guide him towards that future.

  
————————

  
Claude had separated from the others, and Byleth went to find him. She found him inspecting the body of one of the wolves. He was standing near the head of the wolf.

“Oh hey Teach. Did you see what’s in this head?”

Byleth shook her head. She had spent more time watching the thing’s claws than forehead, and for good reason.

“Well, this thing right here is actually a Crest Stone.” That caught her attention. “To be more precise, this Crest Stone belongs to an unnamed Crest. Think I can take it and some blood to Professor Hanneman and he’ll let me use his equipment to inspect it?”

“Giving up on your “10 reasons Rhea and Wilhelm weren’t married” thesis?”

“Oh I am far too stubborn to do that. Call this a side project, or a hobby.”

He drew a knife and made an incision on the wolf’s jugular vein, and collected a small amount of blood in a vial. 

“What are you after here?”

“You don’t expect me to tell you something so personal just like that, do you? Though, I wouldn’t mind sharing if you were to tell me some of your secrets in exchange.” 

He had placed the vial gently into his pack and began to remove the Crest Stone. Byleth silently watched him as she considered his trade offer.

“I don’t have any.” Well, none that she had any answer to, at least.

“You want to play it like that? Alright. Who is your mother? Did you get your Crest from her side or your fathers? Was your Crest even inherited? Because if it wasn’t, I’d really like to know. How come the Sword of the Creator can only be wielded by you? Where is its Crest Stone?” He was standing in front of her now, his work complete.

“I don’t know...” 

Claude sighed. “Sorry, I guess I overstepped. It’s a habit of mine. But I just can’t help it. You’re so mysterious and I’m too curious. I’d say it’s a good match and we’ll work well together.” Claude leaned in to her and winked. “Just trust me on this business, Teach.” He added with a pat on the stuff he’d collected. “But, for now, since you are curious about me as well, I’ll let you in on this secret. If I can figure out how a wolf got a Crest, or if it even did, then I will be one step closer to figuring out how the Hresvelg family got the Crest of Seiros without having descent from Saint Seiros. Maybe.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I missed posting this last week, so I’ll post this now. Life was busy.
> 
> Also, those Giant animals attack with Crest Stones. I got distracted thinking about that lately.


	6. Cichol 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Now that that’s settled, where will you be heading out for this month’s expedition?”
> 
> “Lake Teutates.”
> 
> “Ah, the site dedicated to Saint Indech. It is normally a beautiful area. Do take time to look around.” Seteth turned his attention to Claude. “And you will likely get something out of this as well. Saint Indech and Saint Cichol were fast friends. Some of Cichol’s writings were left there.”

Horsebow Moon  
Day 10

Claude was hovering over the Crest Analyzer in Prof. Hanneman’s office. The blood of the wolf showed no reaction, no Crest. Which was disappointingly boring. If the wolf didn’t have any Crest, then it hadn’t horizontally received the Crest. And if the wolf couldn’t get a Crest somehow then he couldn’t get the Crest of Flames. 

The Crest of Flames that Teach had that let her use the Sword of the Creator. Tales told of the ability of that sword to cut mountains in half. 

Undeterred, and reinvigorate at the prize he had set for himself - the removal of the barriers between his two lineages - he picked up the Creat Stone to see if it held any secrets. The lines of the Crest emblazoned on it were jagged, with dots hovering in the right places to give the appearance of a tree. It really hadn’t matched any of the Crests Professor Hanneman had recorded. 

As he was drawing the image of the Crest into his notebook, Seteth walked into Hanneman’s office.

“Ah, here you are. The Crest Stone you recovered is to be confiscated by the University. There it will be placed in the archives of the museum. You’ll be free to request permission to use it safely in the confines of the laboratory there.” Seteth held out his hand expectantly.

Claude did not want to hand over his one good lead, but he could do little except comply. He packed his things with a sigh. Before he placed the Crest Stone into Seteth’s hand he said, “I’d like that last part in writing, if you don’t mind.”

“Very well. Wait just a moment.” Seteth left the office, leaving a confused Claude behind. Couldn’t he have written using paper and a pen in Hanneman’s office?

Curiosity overcame Claude and he walked into the hallway to follow Seteth, plus he’d find out where the Crest Stone was being held so he could steal it later if need be. Across the way he saw Linhardt and Leonie in Teach’s office. They were there to let her know about a rumor of Lake Teutates. If the rumors were true there was an old temple to Saint Indech with a trial and a prize. Claude had no interest in going, though he did have an obligation in helping his teammates. 

Seteth wasn’t in his office, and had turned a corner. Claude couldn’t figure out which turn he had taken, so he waited outside Teach’s office to keep an eye on Seteth’s. Leonie and Linhardt left Teach’s office, excited for their expedition later in the month. Teach walked over and leaned against the doorframe, smiling as she watched the two go.

Claude observed her smile, entranced by it. He remembered the few times he’d seen her smile before, though this time he was aware of how calm and happy he felt seeing it. Consciously he forced a smile. Well, half forced as her smiles were proving infectious. He may be in a bad mood because of Seteth but that didn’t mean he should push it onto Teach. He wanted to keep seeing her smile, keep staying on good terms with her after he graduated, and maybe be friends.

Before Byleth noticed her admirer, Seteth rounded the corner with Cyril beside him.

“Here is your letter saying you’ll have permission to study the Crest Stone within the confines of the museum.” Claude took the letter and read it over quickly. Something seemed odd about it, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. 

“Professor Eisner, I have a new task for you. This intern has been hired without the ability to read or write. You are to spend some time with him teaching him how to.”

That took the smile off of her face, though she still said she’d be happy to help him. 

“Now that that’s settled, where will you be heading out for this month’s expedition?”

“Lake Teutates.”

“Ah, the site dedicated to Saint Indech. It is normally a beautiful area. Do take time to look around.” Seteth turned his attention to Claude. “And you will likely get something out of this as well. Saint Indech and Saint Cichol were fast friends. Some of Cichol’s writings were left there.”

Seteth was helping him? Claude couldn’t make sense of that for the moment. First Seteth had asked for him to make copies of what he found and then he took away the Crest Stone. Now he was giving advice on where to find more? 

“Thanks, I’ll be sure to snoop around properly.” 

Seteth looked displeased by the phrasing, though said nothing. He crossed his arms and announced his departure before turning around, Cyril following along at his heels.

————————

Horsebow Moon  
Day 27

Claude was eager to see the lake for himself. The group had taken turns carrying Linhardt, who decided to come along for some purpose he hadn’t explained to the Golden Deer. Byleth, in what Claude thinks might have been sadistic pleasure, had made some deal where Professor Balthus carried Linhardt the most. Claude thought well enough of that - Balthus had been hired to help Lorenz delegitimize him.

The lake itself sprawled in front of them, with piers stretching out into the water as if it were a maze.

“Linhardt! Wake up! We've reached Lake Teutates!” Leonie called out.

“Huh? What? Oh, um. Yes. So we have.” He still didn’t sound awake.

“A temple on a lake, huh? Looks fancy. And that's a cute...uh...guard dog?” Claude followed where Leonie was looking to see a massive turtle with spikes all over. He’d question her image of dogs later.

“Guard dog? Is it I to whom you are referring?” The turtle spoke. Claude gasped, as did several around him. This truly was an interesting day.

“Whoa! A magic beast! And it talks!” Leonie was the one to engage with the turtle, so she could take the lead here.

Claude began counting the numerous questions he had for the turtle.

“Nuisance... You weaklings should turn tail and run!” The turtle stretched his head up even higher and widened his stance.

“Uh, hi! We're actually, um, looking for something...” 

“I know well what it is that you desire. If you want it, you must first complete my trial.” So people have tried, and failed, before.

A fog rolled in and people carrying weapons seemed to appear from nowhere. Claude realized exactly how hard his easy recovery was going to be, but he wasn’t the type of person to back down easily. He had a reason to be here, and he’d give it his best try - well, before backing out if things got too rough that is.

“Of course we do. This is as awful as I expected it would be. Perhaps we could go home now?” Claude couldn’t care what Linhardt did, and if he went home by himself it meant he didn’t have to be carried.

“Are you kidding? It's just a little fog! Come on, let's go talk to Mr. Magic Beast!” Leonie maintained her cheerful disposition during the whole conversation.

“I suspect our opponent is an illusion. If we cut off the source of this magic, they should stop attacking,” Linhardt explained. 

Claude did notice something odd about the looks of the people defending the turtle. Phantoms might not be too far from the truth. And that meant loads more secrets for him to figure out.

The Golden Deer, along with Linhardt and Balthus, split up into two groups to follow the different boardwalks. Claude was mildly glad that the rest of the Golden Deer had followed Teach’s grouping orders, which Claude had decided. How terrible it felt to know that his tactics worked but that few would follow the plan if he said it. But success was success, and he’d lean on Teach for as long as he could. How he’d manage after he graduated would be something to tackle later, though the first plan would be a return to solo work.

For that matter he and Leonie were in separate groups as they each looked for their respective artifacts. Professor Balthus and Teach were the leaders of the two groups. For good measure Claude had Lorenz in Balthus’ group. Teach had raised her eyebrows at that one, but ultimately agreed with a sigh. Teach agreed to lead his group, which allowed Claude ample opportunity to study the Sword of the Creator. An extra bonus was that with her combat ability on his side he was more likely to not die. 

And he got a front row seat to the extreme power of Teach with the Sword of the Creator. She moved with grace and agility, swinging the blazing red sword from one phantom to the next. Occasionally the sword seemed to separate almost whip-like and Teach reached enemies at a distance. 

Soon Teach, Raphael, Ignatz, Marianne, and himself reached a large arena made of boardwalks our on the lake. In the center stood the giant turtle, whose size was greater than Claude first thought. Claude barely reached the turtle’s first joint. He aimed his arrows for the space between the shell, where the legs met body. Thankfully his arrows would reach; Raphael would have to settle for punching toes.

Another group was at the turtle, though not the other half of the Golden Deer. They appeared to be mages, dressing all in black and wearing masks that looked like beaks. The turtle was enraged by them, quickly stepping on them and sweeping the bodies into the watery depths with a swipe of its tail. 

“You dare work with such traitors!” Yelled the great turtle.

“We don’t even know who they are!” Claude yelled back, and similar sentiments were shared by several other Deer.

The turtle turned its attention to his group and focused on Teach. “Could you be the incarnation of Sothis? Interesting... Let's test your mettle!” Claude could not digest what that implied at the moment, so he’d have to make a careful mental note and write it down the first chance he got. 

The turtle began to stamp its feet and water fell from the sky. He saw Teach get drenched and bowl over. Marianne was quick to run up to heal her. Claude wasn’t sure how he felt about sticking around for his fight. But surely his bow gave him a safe distance. For good measure he took several steps back to fire at the turtle from the edge of his range.

He was almost out of arrows, with only 3 left in his quiver. He’d have to begin searching the area to snatch arrows from the ground if he were to continue. It seemed like a good time to run. He valued his life more than learning all those secrets and getting his degree.

A phantom appeared before him after he left the arena with the turtle. He took an axe to the side, his leather armor protecting him from bleeding but not the force of the impact. He unsheathed the sword at his side and swung at the phantom. He was clumsy and out of practice with the sword as it felt strange in his hand. His swings were too large and he was off balance. Still he managed a parry and thrust the sword into his attacker’s shoulder. 

A red glow - the tip of the Sword of the Creator - wrapped around the flailing arm of the phantom. Teach retracted the sword and the phantom fell to the ground, splayed on its back. Claude took the opportunity to run his sword through the phantoms chest. No blood was drawn and the phantom vanished. 

“Don’t go running away!” Was the reprimand shouted from Teach. 

“Sorry, but my life isn’t worth dying over something like that. I’m leaving. And what would you do to stop me? Fight me?” Claude was half jesting, but he hoped Byleth was as kindhearted as she let on during lectures despite the cold exterior.

“If need be.” She fell into her normal fighting stance, sword held over her shoulder, but this time she was facing him.

But Claude did not believe she’d have the guts to harm a student. He turned and took a step away from he immense danger. His left arm burst into pain as the Sword of the Creator bit into it, snaking around his arm. Byleth tugged the sword and he was forced to turn back towards the turtle. 

“You’re staying.” If ever words were said with such intent, the thousand yard stare she had left little argument.

Claude grabbed his injured arm and stared at her. Faced with certain death if he left he’d have to somehow survive while fighting the massive turtle of certain death. He looked behind Teach to see the other Deer continuing the fight, looking ragged and raw from the beatings of water. And from the lack of power that was Teach and her sword. 

As much as he didn’t want to die here, he also didn’t like seeing other people die pointlessly. 

Reluctantly he drew closer to the turtle. Marianne scurried over to him and muttered that she’d heal him. His arm felt slightly better after the battle heal, though pulling the bow taught was more difficult than it was before. He’d have to charge the turtle and use his sword.

The turtle’s attention was drawn to the other side as the remainder of the Golden Deer drew up to it. Claude thought he heard Leonie shouting at the turtle. The turtle seemed mildly amused by Leonie. At least it wasn’t completely hostile.

Claude was dunked by water a couple of times, as was Raphael, Lorenz, Professor Balthus, and Teach. Marianne occasionally got splashed by the secondary splashes, though she seemed to be unhurt, just wet. With the ache in his side and the pummeling by the water Claude’s body screamed for him to run. It was nerve wracking but all he could do was continue swinging his sword at the turtle and hoping fate would see him alive at the end of it. 

“You did well. The trial ends here..,” said the turtle.

“What sublime children of men... Go ahead. Name your desire.”

“So, uh, we heard you're giving away free weapons?” Leonie was first to voice her desire.

“Did Saint Cichol ever come here and leave a Scroll?”

“Do be quiet, Leonie and Claude. Somewhere in this temple is said to rest the holy bow of Saint Indech. It is called "the Inexhaustible,” as well as a portion of the 8th Scroll of Cichol. Could you find it in your heart to let my friends here have them?” Linhardt called out to the turtle.

“You have shown might deserving of my sacred bow. I will grant your wish.” His bow? The bow belonged to Indech, or it should.

“Yes! Thanks, Mr. Magic Beast!”

“And you’ll find a scroll written by Saint Cichol in my home. You may make a copy to take with you. Do treat it carefully.” The turtle turned around and entered his large temple, retreating into some dark corner. 

The Golden Deer team entered the temple, now with permission of the turtle. The sound of a giant rumbling, perhaps snoring, echoed along the halls.

Teach drew up to Claude. “What do you suppose this story will be about?”

Claude shrugged, “at this rate I’d need proof Seiros and Wilhelm were siblings. But then they’d be blood related and the Hresvelg’s could have gotten the crest from a more distant ancestor. It wouldn’t help my actual theory much, to be honest.”

Leonie and Linhardt quickly found a bow hanging on the wall with the words ‘The Inexhaustible’ written on a plague above it. The bow was a golden color, with a steep recurve. The belly had some ornate fluting, though there were small cracks here and there, likely from the bow’s 1000 year history. 

Teach was standing near the two, or rather, was standing amongst the gathering around the bow. The bow really was a treasure, a legendary artifact weapon that was rumored could be used by all - Crest or no Crest. It really would be a huge boon for Leonie’s career. Again, Teach was smiling at the success of one of her students. Perhaps one day Claude’s thesis would bear fruit and he’d be on the receiving end. That would be a day to look forward to.

Claude walked over to the temple’s bookshelf and spent some time searching for the distinct style of scroll Cichol preferred. The handwriting on the scroll gave it away with its large loops and easy reading. The writing was super easy to read, almost as if it were made to be read by children and those learning to read. It also seemed vaguely familiar. Claude blamed it on having read a few of the scrolls already, though something told him that he had seen it elsewhere.

————————

“How strange,” was all Teach could say as she read the scroll. She thought Saint Cichol had written these for children, yet what she read was utterly not for young children.

“Strange? That’s all you can say?” Claude huffed and shook his head in disbelief. “It breaks societal taboos! Half siblings marrying.” Claude threw his hand up on disbelief. 

“Did Arvis or Deirdre know?” Teach started looking over the scroll again to see if she missed something. 

This scroll was about a war where 12 holy nobles were chosen by some god dragons to wield weapons made of their fangs and claws to destroy an evil dragon god. Truth be told, the story was eerily similar to the legends around the 10 Elites and Nemesis, minus the part about being made from dragons. And that dragons would have to exist, with murals depicting them in churches all over Fodlan. Claude chalked stories of dragons up to fairy tales meant to keep the gullible in line.

The story never seemed open about how much Arvis knew about his wife. Well, he seemed to realize he married another man’s husband right before he killed said husband. But evil cultists certainly spelled it out for the reader.

“Whether they knew or not doesn’t seem to matter. A union between brother and sister brought about the reincarnation of an evil dragon god. Seems a fairly good lesson- don’t commit incest. You don’t think Saint Cichol wrote such a dark story to keep people from breaking taboo, do you?”

Teach only shrugged in response.

“Interesting, but dark, story aside I also have no evidence of familial relationship between Seiros and Wilhelm.”

Claude looked darkly at the scroll in front of him. How hard could it be to prove he was right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Linhardt came along with the excuse of being able to observe Byleth as part of his thesis.
> 
> Byleth would end up on another date with Balthus in exchange for him keeping quiet again.

**Author's Note:**

> I’ll try to update every other week.
> 
> Feedback appreciated.


End file.
